Check-In and Arrival Checklist

All new international students of any status are required to check-in with the International Programs Office (IPO) by attending New International Student Orientation. Students are required to attend all days of orientation.

Arrival Checklist

Upon arrival be sure to complete all of the items below:

Print your Electronic I-94 Arrival/Departure Card

This printed form is required for your immigration files at International Programs and is also required for employment paperwork if you intend to work on campus. Please go to www.cbp.gov/i-94 - you will need know your date of entry into the U.S. and have your passport available to be able to complete the information

Check in with your department

Meet with your major professor/advisor (if you have not yet been assigned one, see your department)

If you are a graduate student and are a Research (RA) or Teaching Assistant (TA), contact your department and the Student Accounts Office to fill out paperwork for payment on your account and payment methods.

Pay your Student Fees

Go to the Student Accounts Office in the Student Union Building (SUB). If you are not able to pay your fees all at once you must set up a payment plan immediately to avoid late fees.

Get your student identification card (Vandal Card)

All students must have a Vandal Card and if you live on campus, you will need it to get into your room. After you have registered and paid your fees, take your passport with you to the Vandal Card Office in the Student Union Building (SUB), give them your Student ID# (from your admissions information) and ask them to make the card for you. There is no charge for the first card that you request.

Establish your email account

To access you Vandalmail account you need to go to www.vandals.uidaho.edu. All UI emails from professors, advisors, student accounts, IPO, etc. are through your Vandalmail account. You can also forward all of your other e-mail accounts to Vandalmail, which makes it easier to check all of your e-mail and this provides you with much more space to receive e-mail. If you have any difficulties with your Vandalmail account, please go to the Computer Services Help Desk in room 128 of the Teaching Learning Center (TLC).

Health Insurance

The UI offers all students a health insurance plan and your student account is charged automatically as soon as you register for classes. If you wish to buy another insurance, it must meet specific requirements for your visa status (found in your welcome guide and on iVandal at www.ivandal.uidaho.edu). Alternate insurance must be effective on the day classes begin for at least 1 year (unless you are here for only 1 semester) – through to the beginning of next fall semester. Insurance waiver requests need to be submitted through iVandal at www.ivandal.uidaho.edu.

Charges will stay on your student account until your insurance is approved and uploaded into the UI VandalWeb system.

You will be required to answer questions and fill in information, as well as upload copies of your insurance cards, front and back, your confirmation letter/document, and a copy of your policy brochure if you have one.

The IPO will keep copies of your immigration documents, but you should also keep copies for you own personal use. Copy your I-20 or DS-2019, passport, visa, I-94, etc. and put them in a safe place that you will remember. You can make copies of your documents at the Copy Center in the Commons.

Check out the General Resources in iVandal for helpful information.

Plan to attend the Undergraduate New Student Orientation or the Graduate New Student Orientation

As a new international student, you are required to attend a Student Orientation.

Fall Orientation: Held the last three (3) weekdays prior to the first day of classes.

Spring Orientation: Held the last two (2) days before classes begin.

Summer Orientation: Students who arrive in the summer must attend the Fall Orientation.